WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — The seventh-ranked Williams College men's soccer team squared off against No. 20 Tufts Saturday afternoon, as Ben Pensky played the role of hero for the Jumbos with the game-winning goal in the 23rd minute during a 1-0 setback for the Ephs on Cole Field.

"It was a tough result, but fantastic performance and effort from the team today," said sixth-year head coach Steffen Siebert. "The performance will give us lots of positives moving forward. We are looking forward to another great NESCAC game on Tuesday against Middlebury."

During the 23rd minute, Xavier Canfin played a corner kick into the 18-yard box for the Jumbos (9-2-3, 5-2-2 NESCAC), and then Pensky found the back of the net with a header goal.

The Ephs (9-2-2, 5-2-2 NESCAC) led in shots on goal, 7-6, while Tufts held a 19-13 lead in total shots. Tufts was awarded 13 corner kicks and Williams attempted three. Nikola Antic earned the shutout win for the visitors, making seven saves, while junior goalkeeper Kai Darrell stopped four shots for the hosts.

During the 2025 regular season, Williams defeated Tufts, 3-1, marking the Ephs' first overall victory against Tufts since Oct. 19, 2013, and first win at Tufts since Oct. 23, 2010. The two programs competed in an instant classic during the 2022 NESCAC Quarterfinals at Cole Field, as Williams sent the game into overtime with a goal off a penalty kick by Nathan Song '23 with 11 seconds on the clock in the second half. The game went down as a 1-1 tie, but the Ephs advanced to the conference semifinals by winning the penalty-kick shootout, 4-3.

The Ephs will be battling for playoff positioning with their regular-season finale Tuesday at No. 1 Middlebury with kickoff set for 2 p.m.